Atlanta Falcons: 5 Things Learned From Week 2
By John Buhler
The Opposition Will Choose to Attack CB Robert Alford Aerially
If there was one thing that I found disappointing with the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, it was how easily the New York Giants were able to move the football in Falcons CB Robert Alford‘s direction. It seemed that New York OC Ben McAdoo was able to exploit the Atlanta secondary by lining up WR Odell Beckham, Jr. on Alford for most of the game.
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While I originally thought that Atlanta would have put CB Desmond Trufant on Beckham the whole game, DC Richard Smith opted to use Trufant to shut down one side of the field than a specific player. Since Dez wasn’t moving, Ben McAdoo chose to attack the Falcons secondary where Robert Alford positioned himself.
In Year Three, I would have hoped that Alford would not be a mismatch in the Atlanta defensive backfield. Though most teams don’t have a wide receiver of ODB’s caliber, you have to feel concerned about the opposition exploiting Atlanta’s secondary through Alford.
Even though I still believe that Robert Alford can become a solid cornerback in the NFL, he might have to settle into a nickel role to have sustainable success. The problem is that rookie CB Jalen Collins is still so much a work-in-progress that Alford has to play out of position in the Atlanta defense in the meantime.
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